Founder's Blog

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Join us on June 1, 2010 as we open the doors of our 4th location at Perris CA. We met with Perris Mayor Al Landers last month to discuss details about having an SWVBRC in his City. Pictured are Albert Guzman, City Mayor Al Landers and SWVBRC Founder Albert R. Renteria.

The Mayor met with the City council with our proposal and the City approved the use of the facility to serve and support the communities and Veterans of Perris CA.

We need paint, your time, furnishings, computers, donations and anything that you can contribute! We reached out to www.RebuildingTogether.org volunteers Ed and Allison Eccelston and they are joining our effort. We are excited that you too want to doing your part in whatever means is best for you!

Whether you are near or far, you can join us by being part of our online community and inviting others to join as well. Your registration is your ticket! Hope to see more of your friends, families and all those you know to be part of our effort.

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My orientation started October 1999, when I was in Yokosuka Japan, visiting units and during an out brief I presented to the local commands, my vision was triggered and I planned my future. Shortly afterwards, I submitted my retirement request to be effective April 1, 2000, April Fool’s Day. To everyone’s surprise and it became a reality when I actually retired into the sunset after 26 years of Marine Corps service. I share with you that it has taken me ten years to complete my 14 Level Reintegration Program and as a result, effective today I have incorporated Albert R. Renteria Corporation, aka The ARRC ™. And I will finalize my business plan next week.

I created the Southwest Veterans’ Business Resource Center, Inc to empower communities and increase awareness on how best to serve our America Veterans. Below is my ten year journey and a template for our Learners to consider. The success of my efforts is in fact the steps and models I created to develop the value of social capital. Without a network, the cost to start a business will far exceed your means and create more of a burden than meeting your vision to start your own business. I am now ready to start another new journey.

My 14 Level Reintegration Program

Level 2

Who am I?I am an American Veteran, a unique race of people that was indoctrinated the importance of God, Country and its people. I served to defend freedoms and a capitalist society so that the citizens may have the right to a free enterprise to profit and selling products and services the market will bear.

Level 3

What industry am I interest in? All I know is how to be a service provider and for 26 years, I serviced thousands of Marines, I was a Chief Warrant Officer 4, and I want to provide a service to others to ensure their quality of life is prosperous and the awareness of benefits and programs surpasses their own expectation. I want to be in the service provider industry and the premier business sought by many.

Level 4

What are my goals?I knew that I was about to disembark a fast moving vehicle and it was not about to stop to let me off. My goal was to use my GI Bill and embarked to earn my masters degree and I jumped into my first course the same day I retired. I set my goals to complete my masters in one year, completed, I set my goal to establish a non-profit to provide a means to civilians by which they can serve and support deployed forces and I created www.OIDelivers.org, done! A full operational Civilian-to-Military Delivery System® manned by an all volunteer team. My goal was to learn more about what it took to create a business, I worked for George S. May International Consulting firm and met over 2,000 Chief Executive Officers, I learned so much and got paid to learn, done! I wanted to create a post service non-profit after I passed on OI to the civilian volunteers and during May 2008, I founded the Southwest Veterans’ Business Resource Center, Inc., a national organization. My ten year goal was to incorporate April 1, 2010, and I reached that milestone today. I have set my goals and reached them all, these are just my top level goals.

Level 5

What are my objectives to reach my goals? I set a few objectives that promised that I reach all of my goals. Education, learning, networking, social capital, travel and meet the people I wanted to serve was my primary objective that allowed me to achieve my goals. I volunteered and developed a series of models to make the two non-profits a success. My objective was to ensure I can in fact build a business and serve the community. These objectives was a living plan for a ten year cycle. The cycle is complete and I have new goals to set.

Level 6

How many benefits and resources are there?During my 26 year military career, I was the subject matter expert and I thought I knew all of my benefits and resources, and I was so wrong. What I knew was all the benefits and resources made available by the Department of Defense and nothing really, about the Veteran Affairs or community support for Veterans. Once I finally acknowledged what I didn’t know, I sought out every opportunity to increase my knowledge base and it proved to be a ten year trek and I am still learning! It is an endless list. However, during my discovery, I recognized a problem. The problem was not 100% of the Veterans were enjoying the support, including me. I learned that there are redundancies and wasted resources and a solution is in demand. This new founded information influenced me on what my vision would formulate to be. I am a 50% disabled Veteran and the first year of my retirement I learned a few things, but it was later that I learned the full benefit of the Veteran Vocational Rehab and Employment program. Like most Department of Defense programs, there are many conditions to be met and variances to entitlement. Ten years later, I sought a benefit and approved for one of the programs. I suspect many more that think they know, might not know enough to realize there is so much.

Level 7

What do I need to do to network with all existing resources? Reach out is what I knew I had to do. I am a life member to several Veteran group. It was a financial investment, but I did so, not so much to establish a network, but to give back to these Veteran organizations for doing so much to ensure I had the benefits I earned for my service. I had no expectations, but my network grew into the thousands across the United States. I joined chat rooms, studied behaviors via online. My masters was electronic commerce, my military expertise was manpower management systems, I began to understand the value of social capital and how important it is to create links with not just those you know, but those you don’t know. I know someone in all 50 states and thousands more around the world. I am never a stranger in any town I visit for the first time.

Level 8

Am I registered with the VA, local groups and national groups? I quickly realized his being a necessity if I were to achieve my goals and objectives and became a life member to a dozen Veteran groups. I registered with the VA and have my VA card. This is the essence of being an American Veteran and my interest is to make sure every Veteran is a VA card carry participant. Do know a Veteran that doesn’t have one?

Level 9

What does my network look like, is it providing results? I have a global network, but it took me ten years to build and bring together like minded people to serve others. My approach has always been simple, how can I best serve you? My focus is you, not me, if you succeed, I succeed. The results have been incredible, the learning has been amazing and the blessings of meeting so many has kept me in awe. Awe, because they all want to help a Veteran, their family and our deployed forces. Never have I had any difficulty reaching out to my network to engage them to serve our Veterans, their family and deployed forces. The results, well, I am a loss for words.

Level 10

Are my techniques for interviewing to par? They never are! Each new day demands a new approach and just when I think I nailed it, I have to revise. My technique is up to par, but I have learned never to take for granted that the next person I interview with for a job or contract, I need to adjust to that situation. I have competitors and they are good and better than me, if I settle for one approach. I am a capitalist and risks exists and the greatest risk is when one thinks they have no risk and believe their techniques for interviewing are up to par.

Level 11

Is starting my own business a better option for me? This took some real awareness. I know who I am and I knew my attitude and level of experience would be more of a handicap and as each year passed, my age added to that handicap. Starting my own business is the best option for me. I recognized this early on and my sanity was balanced by creating non-profits to keep my core values intact and to continue to serve as I served for 26 years. I managed financially with my pension and other independent contracts I secured as a self employed. I donated substantially to the non-profits I founded and not just with funds, but my time and resources. It was my way of transitioning and I really needed it, otherwise, I would have collapsed as many do, when they are not doing what they were accustom of doing for so long. My plan was to incorporate on April 1, 2010 and I did. My benefits with the VA were approved to support this decision.

Level 12

Of all the resources I have uncovered, do I have the knowledge and tools? After ten years and combined with the tools I garnered during my military career, I have a good set of tools to establish a corporation. I will continue to find more tools, resources and people to be part of what I do.

Level 13

What do I need to do to create a viable business plan? I took steps to learn, maybe ten years is too long for many, but I first had to reintegrate back into society and learn as much as I could to make sure that owning my own business was a better option for me. I knew that I had to reach out to the VA and relearn the five step program and seek support from their self-employment program. The program is to guide and assist the Veteran to develop and produce a viable business plan. I am in that program now.

Level 14

Will my business plan work, is it financially sound, will it create jobs? This is the next journey and I believe it will be and produce all the results I am seeking. I have prepared myself the best I could and with the support of one of my VA benefits, I REFUSE TO FAIL!!

Chip Dykes our VP of Business Development and I, had the honor of Visiting with LtGen Dunford, CG of I MEF at his office yesterday.

Our visit was to welcome the General to his new command and to learn how best we can serve your active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton CA.

The General shared with us his gratitude that you and all those that extend their support for your Marines.

Chip and I will be presenting to the General a series of topics that can best prepare the departing Marine how best to reintegrate back into their communities. We are honored to do this.

As we seek the opportunity to coordinate our efforts, I extend an invitation to you to participate. You don't have to be nearby to do so. Technology allows us to reach across the country and participate.

If you have an interest to participate, please let Chip and me know about your interest.

We will keep you posted on our progress. As I shared with the General, we cannot do enough for our men and women in uniform and we are here to serve 24/7. The General again extended his gratitude to all of you for all that you do!!! Semper Fi,

During January, 2010, I enjoyed traveling to Phoenix AZ, Dallas TX, Sacramento CA and Anchorage AK. My travels offer me an insight to the pulse of the people and many Veterans I connect with. In every case, as I meet many people we start with small talk and at some point the common question surfaces "where are you from?"

I am certain you have enjoyed getting a pulse as well and similar small talk. What I have concluded is that this small talk always leads to my race or ethnic background. My ethnic background is Mexican, born and raised in Chicago Il. However, I have said in the past that I am an American-Mexican race, I did so to be politically correct.

My travels last month made me reconsider my race. I looked up the definition of race and there are clear definitions in particular " any people united by common history, language, cultural traits...". This hit the nerve of my thought. I am of the American Veteran race as I am united with my fellow Veteran by common history, language and cultural traits.

I started to be part of the American Veteran race when I earned the right to wear the uniform of the United States Marine Corps at age 17. My photo is the cradle of my American Veteran race.

While in uniform, I signed and gave an oath to comply with the Uniform Code of Military Justice, a language of its own.

I am sharing this with you as I continue to share my vision nationally. I have learned and continue to learn that the American Veteran is a relevant race. If we as a nation fail to change on how we serve our American Veterans, soon, we may find the American Veteran to be a dying breed. It has been reported that 23 - 40% of American homeless adults are American Veterans! This is not the result we should accept and it is my aim to eradicate that notion by 2035.

My last photo taken while in uniform was September 9, 1999 with Master Sergeant David Folsom and Brigadier General Mary Wilson, during my visit to Okinawa Japan. While on travel, it was at that time I decided to retire April 1, 2000, with tremendous intention on what I decided to achieve. I am not alone, many have joined my aim and we will REFUSE TO FAIL! Semper Fi, and thank you so very much for crossing the line together with me!

We are at the beginning of a new decade and many opportunities. I start 2010 harvesting my knowledge with an urge to sharing it with you.

Here I am in this photo 35 years ago, a Marine corporal, taking part of a desert field exercise at 29 Palms CA. I was stationed at Marine Air Base 11, Marine Air Group 16, El Toro CA.

I would have never thought I would be doing what I am doing now and I had other plans. I was only 18 years old and at that age, well, I know I am not alone when I admit, the moment was my future if you know what I mean.

As time passsed, I was exposed to many things, my experience and maturity developed and a new meaning of what my future is unfolded.

Fast forward 16 years to 1991 to the Gulf War and here I am in this photo at El Kibrit, now a Marine warrant officer and taking part of a war. My duties changed and my responsilities multiplied. In both tours I accounted for manpower and personnel. The first experience was to track Marines to ensure daily accountability, a paper intensive process and time consuming. The second experience, I was held directly accountable for over 14,000 Marines in a time of war leveraging technology, this was a turning point for me.

I started to realize the value of many things. I recognized that every service member had one thought during a war environment and that thought is the safety of their family and frineds back home. During war, a warrior focuses on the battlefield and prepared to sacrifice the ultimate gift, life, for others to enjoy the land of the free. A compelling thought to consider for the new decade.

This period of time influenced what I wanted to achieve in my lifetime. I learned that all those that serve are skilled with doing anything they set themselves to do. We all have a business acumen and don't even know it! Yes, we were all trained to tracking something, getting the task at hand completed and to use whatever resources we can garner to complete the mission.

I want to ask you to join me today to make a difference in your community. I need your help to reachout to all those that you know and ask them a simple question "Do you know a Veteran?" Do you know if the Veteran is enjoying what they have earned for serving our Country? How can you confirm that? Simple, ask the Veteran if they have a VA card like the one below. And if they don't, send them our way. We will guide them to get their VA card. This is our starting point to eradicating the notion of a homeless Veteran. And perhaps to guiding them to become a Veteran business owner! Will you help me?

We have three centers and our total monthly operating cost for all three centers does not exceeed $3,000. We have negotiated a low cost for rent and this cost includes cable, phone and utilities. Each center is manned by volunteers. We need your financial support to keep our doors open and to open more doors. As we eradicate the notion of homeless Veterans we are encouraging our Veterans to become a business owner and to prosper in your community. Donations can be made online or by check to SWVBRC and mailed to P.O. Box 1025, Fallbrook, CA 92088-1025. Help us help your City make a difference in 2010!

I just completed my thought, but as life is what it is, I lost it as my system froze and with it my written words gone! Imagine that! I always wonder why this happens to me and it does so often.

No matter, I know I won't be able to replicate what I first thought. I have captured the moment as a realization that every second in life has its meaning and necessitates the harvesting of our knowledge.

Today is celebrated around the world and a giving celebration it is. I have been blessed to have traveled the world many times. The gifts have been abundant. Not a tangible gift, but one of lasting value, my experiences. I am a believer of passing on gifts and I pray that I always have a means to do so.

I often reach backwards to understand my past and like you, I either read something I wrote or scurry through photos for a glimpse of my memories. I want to share a memory of my past and it is this photo of me taking my holy communion at age 8. I have vivid memories of that day and my prayer was simple. To always have the strength and courage to give what little I have to as many that I can reach.

Today, I thank you for the gift of knowing you. We met at some point and why you are getting my email. Who would have thought we can meet someone and not eye to eye.

As we end 2009, I reflect on what we have achieved. We have three centers across the country and have grown to be a national organization in about 18 months with the least amount of cost. Evidence that prayers are heard and my strength and courage perpetuating.

The New Year is only days away and as you contemplate your aim for 2010 do consider our aim to eradicate the notion of a homeless Veteran. We are determined to achieve that aspiration by 2035 and with your support of any kind will fuel us. Your thoughts and prayers are invaluable and we accept them as the greatest gift.

We are all a pebble in an ocean of hope and create many ripples that intersect to create giant waves that will wipe clear the causes that denies a Veteran the rights to enjoy life and give a new life for serving a Great Nation that empowers its people the Freedoms to live their life within the laws of our land.

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year!

P.S. If you are interested to learn how best to support our aim, please send me an email.

September 26, 2009 - My journey back to California from North Carolina started with a 0500 wake up call. I felt refreshed, energized and very pleased with the visit at our third center ready to open November 11, 2009 in honor of Veterans Day. Pictured is Levi Samuels our VP of Family Readiness and property owner Ray Burnette

My first stop before I arrived to Fayatteville airport for a 1437 departure, was with Levi Samuels, our newly named Vice President of Family Readiness. We connected at 0715 for breakfast and covered the details of my trip and discussed our D-35 milestone. We are on track and expecting a good effort. The community in the Fort Bragg area are amazing and are taking ownership of their center.

I headed to the airport around noon to get settled in for the trip back home. All was going well, I did my normal routine, did some research, made some calls and contemplated plans for the next day.

My flight from Fayatteville was on time and I knew my lay over at Charlotte was a couple of hours and it afforded me the opportunity to review my thoughts on the week at Fort Bragg. Time flew by.

The plane that was scheduled for us arrived about a hour prior to our departure only to learn it was struck by lightning and was punctured. It was blessing all arrived safely. However, that meant an hour delay and if you have traveled and this happens, that usually turns into hours delay.

An 1837 departure turned into a 2100 departure. I knew my patience and tolerance needed checking so this was a good time for a quality check and I proceeded to work on "Destination: Refuse to Fail" how appropriate and timely. While working on this, I get an email telling me my flight has changed with a 0750 departure on Sunday. I smiled and confirmed that this was truly testing my tolerance and patience. I closed my laptop, picked up my checked in luggage and picked up my new ticket for the morning. Another 0500 start day to try this again.

I wanted to share with you this part of my journey and to introduce to you our "Refuse to Fail Landscape". And I figure this was a great time to post it after enjoying this adventure back home.

We have 48 Veteran Learners that we vetted and they have taken on the task to Refuse to Fail. Some have posted their blogs and some have not and some are contemplating their destination. The Refuse to Fail Landscape is for all to enjoy and to realize when it comes down to where the rubber hits the road, we all need a script to consider to revitalize what we know we are capable of.

I have an endless inventory of energy and I am fueled by you, there is no question about that. You have touched my life and in return I will REFUSE TO FAIL to achieve my aim to eradicate the notion of a homeless Veteran by the year 2035! My patience and tolerance are in check, I am here to serve you 24/7, no matter where I am. I will offer you my time and resources to enrich your value and empower you so that you can empower others to reach out to Veterans of all eras so that we can influence a change and let no Veteran go homeless. They have all earned our support and alone we will fail, but together, there is no obstacle we cannot overcome. Semper Fi!

P.S. If you haven't registered with our online community please do so by clicking Where Communities Serve Veterans. We have three types of registrations, Veteran, Grassroots and Business and each have multiple levels, register with the type and level that best suits you. In doing so your registration is a resounding vote to serve our Veterans!

"We shall not fail or falter; we shall not weaken or tire... give us the tools and we will finish the job!" -Sir Winston Churchill

I just returned from one of the best workshop I have ever attended at The McCormick Catigny Estate just outside my hometown of Chicago, IL.

There were eleven other organizations listed below that attended as well.

In the Photo is Johnny from www.Vets4Vets.us, Kate, Catherine and Sharron that hosted the event and gave an incredible presentation! Thank you!

I will create a web page soon to list all the attending organizations. This workshop is the first of its kind and a paradigm shift on a best practice on bringing like minded organizations in support of our Veteran together to create a unique partnership and perhaps create a coalition that ensures the best service possible to our men and women the preserve the freedoms of a Great Nation.

My next trip is to North Carolina followed by our grand opening at Vancouver Washington. Semper Fi,

Our Learners travled to Las Vegas to attend the NAB Show and to sign on our first Learner, Steve Sanson from Las Vegas. This is a first for our Learners and not the last event we will send them on.

During their Las Vegas trip, I traveled to Vermont and met some great Americans. I attended the Vermont Military & Family Network at Newport Vermont, where I had the honor of meeting Colonel NDoye and his small delegation from Senegal Africa. I learned that Vermont on behalf of the United States have extended a cooperative with Senegal Africa and Macedonia to share how the United States provides a variety of outreach programs to our military, families and Veterans. We had a very interesting conversation and I must say, I very proud of our country for sharing ideas with other Nations.

As we end the month, we have a busy month during May in honor of Memorial Day. We plan to have our grand opening on May 24, 2009 in Vancover Vermont. This will be our second location we celebrate to empowere communities to serve Veterans.

As always, I remain your servant and I thank you for all that you do to serve our Veterans. Many Blessings, Al